2012 Buick LaCrosse Check Engine Light

Is it safe to drive your 2012 Buick LaCrosse with the check engine light on?

If the check engine light is flashing, this means that there is a serious issue and it is advised to service your Buick LaCrosse quickly. This question is not extremely simple because it all depends on the severity of the issue. If the cause is a minor issue, such as a loose gas cap, it should be safe to drive. This is generally indicated by a steady glow of the check engine light. If you notice a difference in the performance of the car, it could be an indication of a more serious problem. Call the experts at Coggin Buick/GMC of Orange Park by dialing 9046829278 so you can describe the issues. Or reduce your speed and bring your 2012 Buick to our certified mechanics as in the near future as possible.

Will the check engine light reset itself?

The check engine light on your 2012 Buick LaCrosse will ordinarily shut itself off if the issue or code that caused it to turn on is fixed. For instance, if the cause of your check engine light coming on was a loose gas cap, if it's tightened, the light will rapidly turn itself off. Also, if your catalytic converter is working accurately, and you did a lot of stop-and-go driving, that may have turned on the check engine light due to the high usage of the converter. In most cases, your 2012 Buick LaCrosse light will go off after about 20-40 miles. If you drive over that amount and the light is still on, you will need to bring it in to Coggin Buick/GMC of Orange Park so the light and code can be double-checked and reset.

How many miles can you drive with the check engine light?

The safest bet is to decipher the code and then plan your strategy accordingly. Since each check engine code has its own level of severity, it is typically difficult to predict how many miles you can be secure in driving with the warning light on. It could be anything from a bad sensor to plug wires needing to be replaced. If you check engine light is flashing, we suggest that you pull over and contact Coggin Buick/GMC of Orange Park to help determine if your car is secure to drive in or if we suggest a tow truck.

Check Engine Light Service 2012 Buick LaCrosse

What do you do when you’re driving along in your Buick LaCrosse and suddenly, a yellow light illuminates on your dash and says "Check Engine". If you’re like most Buick owners, your heart sinks exceptionally because you may have precisely idea about what that light is trying to tell you or how you should react. The fear of the unknown (or the cost of the unknown) can be just as stressful. But take a deep, serene breath and realize the light coming on doesn’t mean you have to pull the car over to the side of the road and call a tow truck, but it is advised that you get your 2012 Buick LaCrosse checked promptly. Ignoring that warning could end up causing major, extensive damage to costly engine components.

When your 2012 Buick LaCrosse's ECM (electronic control module), which is the vehicle's onboard computer, finds a problem in the electronic control system that it can’t correct, a computer turns on your check engine light. This amber or yellow light is usually labeled “check engine” or “service engine soon”, or the light may be nothing more than a picture of an engine, or a picture of the engine with the word “check.”

When the light turns on, the ECM stores an engine code or “trouble code” in its memory that can immediately identify the issue, whether it's a sensor or a failing engine part. This code is read with an electronic scan tool that is used by our Buick auto repair mechanics at Coggin Buick/GMC of Orange Park. There are still a number of essentially inexpensive code readers that are designed for do-it-yourselfers, should you pick that route too. While this code will tell you the issue that is detected, a true diagnosis still requires an experienced professional to determine the precisely correct issue and repair it.

What could cause the check engine light to come on in a 2012 Buick LaCrosse?

When your check engine light comes on, this could be as simple as tightening or replacing your gas cap. Likewise, the check engine light could again be a warning of an essential problem that could cause serious damage to your engine and come with a hefty and expensive repair bill. Depending on your make and model, the check engine light will illuminate or blink. A steady and continuous glow ordinarily means something less serious but a flashing check engine light reveals that your vehicle’s engine is in significant trouble and helpful service is necessary promptly. If your check engine light is flashing in your 2012 Buick LaCrosse, we remarkably suggest not to drive the vehicle and schedule Buick service today. Below is a list of the most common reasons your check engine light can come on:

• Your mass airflow sensor (known as MAF) needs to be replaced. The mass airflow sensor in your Buick LaCrosse is what determines how much fuel is necessary to run your engine efficiently by measuring the amount of air entering the engine. As a part of the engine management system, the mass airflow sensor helps adjust to certain changes, like altitude. If your Buick LaCrosse is having trouble starting, idling rough or has a sudden speedy change in the position of the throttle pedal, this could be a essential sign of a faulty mass airflow sensor.
• One of the most common and frequent cause is that your 2012 Buick LaCrosse gas cap is loose, damaged or missing. The gas cap for your 2012 Buick LaCrosse serves different purposes. It prevents dangerous gas fumes from being released when you aren't driving, it seals the fuel system and helps maintain pressure within the fuel tank. What happens if you have a faulty fuel cap? If your gas cap is old or has a ruptured seal, you can lose fuel through evaporation which will result in more trips to the pump and be more pricey. Luckily, to replace a gas cap isn't costly. If your check engine light turns on immediately after you put gas in your 2012 Buick LaCrosse, first thing you should check is to make sure the cap isn’t loose — or that it's still on your car’s roof or at the fuel pump.
• The battery is low or dead. The battery in your 2012 Buick LaCrosse is each critical. Without a vehicle battery, your vehicle won’t start, light up the road in front, play the radio or charge your phone. Today’s vehicle batteries last much longer than they did a few decades ago, and they don't genuinely require maintenance. The price of a new one depends on the type of Buick you drive, but check our current service coupons and specials.
• Your 2012 Buick LaCrosse has a vacuum leak. Each Buick LaCrosse has a vacuum system that performs a wide variety of functions. The vacuum system likewise helps lower adverse emissions by routing the fumes as gasoline evaporates through the engine. If you notice that your RPM is high in idle or randomly surges, a vacuum leak could be the cause. Over time, vacuum hoses can dry out and crack, particularly if they’re exposed to intense heat or extreme cold.
• Issues with any aftermarket items. An aftermarket alarm, exhaust or other item can wreak extreme havoc on your 2012 Buick LaCrosse if it’s not installed accurately. These aftermarket parts and accessories can drain the battery, trigger the check engine light, or even prevent the car from starting. If these issues sound familiar, bring your LaCrosse to Buick and have our team of skilled certified mechanics guarantee that your aftermarket items were installed properly and aren't causing any issue. Getting accessories, particularly aftermarket parts and accessories, or using OEM parts first place might cost a little bit more but could help you save considerably from having to get poor work and damage caused by poor installation work corrected.
• New Spark Plugs or Plug Wires are necessary for your 2012 Buick LaCrosse. The spark plugs are the part of your engine that ignites the air/fuel mix in the combustion chamber of your car. This explosion is what moves the pistons and makes the engine run smooth. The spark plug wires deliver the spark from the ignition coil to the spark plugs. If your spark plugs or spark plug wires are bad or old, you will experience a evident poor performance and reduced power. In some extreme cases, your engine will have trouble starting or continuing to run. Worn spark plugs and plug wires can cause clogged catalytic converter or damage to ignition coils and O2 sensors, leading to more costly repairs.
• Your catalytic converter is bad or going bad. The catalytic converter is a part of your 2012 Buick LaCrosse’s exhaust system. The catalytic converter's function is to turn the carbon monoxide created by the combustion process into carbon dioxide. A damaged catalytic converter is usually caused by invariably neglected maintenance, which is why Coggin Buick/GMC of Orange Park offers a free multi-point inspection with each Buick service. If you have an issue with your catalytic converter and don't get it repaired, your 2012 Buick LaCrosse will not pass an emissions test, show a lack of engine performance and will negatively affect your fuel economy. Your vehicle may run at a higher temperature, too, which can cause other delicate problems from overheating.
• Your O2 Sensor (Oxygen Sensor) needs to be replaced. The Oxygen sensor, known as the O2 sensor, measures the amount of oxygen in your exhaust system. If there is excess oxygen in your exhaust system, fuel burns more swiftly and your car will be less efficient when it comes to fuel economy. So what happens if I don’t replace your O2 sensor? A faulty sensor can not only affect your miles per gallon, but it can cause significant damage to your catalytic converter and your 2012 Buick LaCrosse's spark plugs. The O2 sensor sends data to the vehicle’s onboard computer to determine the explicitly correct mix of air and fuel that enters the cylinders in your engine. A faulty O2 sensor can likewise cause a vehicle to fail an emissions test.

2012 Buick LaCrosse Check Engine Light Flashing

Although there are countless potential causes of an illuminated Check Engine Light, we know from years of providing Check Engine Light Diagnosis Service that there are many common causes including something as simple as a loose gas cap. Other generally common reasons for a Check Engine Light are damaged oxygen sensor, dirty mass airflow sensor, damaged head gasket, damaged emissions control part, a malfunction with the fuel injection system, or damaged spark plugs to name a few. No matter what is the root cause of the Check Engine Light, we have the Buick Certified Mechanics and the certified service protocol to isolate the root problem and entirely repair it as needed to restore factory specifications. When this happens, the Check Engine Light turns off, and you can leave the service center knowing that your Buick issue was completely fixed.

Every 2012 Buick LaCrosse was designed with a high-technology performance monitoring system with a computer, and a series of sensors positioned strategically throughout the car on its essential systems. The speedy sensors are continually detecting conditions while sending crucial data to the electronic control unit. If the electronic control unit detects that the data is out of factory specifications, the Check Engine Light illuminates telling you that there is a problem. Yet, unfortunately that is the limitation of the Check Engine Light – it won’t tell you what specifically is wrong nor what to do about it. That’s where we come in; Coggin Buick/GMC of Orange Park provides a Check Engine Light Diagnosis Service that isolates the core problem and gives you a recommendation on what to do next from a Exceedingly Qualified Service professional.

How much does it cost to get the engine light checked?

The average cost for a check engine light diagnosis & testing is usually between $88 and $111. The good news, Coggin Buick/GMC of Orange Park offers totally complimentary multi-point inspections and free diagnostics, in most cases, to help determine the cause of your check engine light. The check engine light warns of issues ranging from a gas cap that's not correctly tightened to a more serious failure like a bad catalytic converter or a problem with one of the car's oxygen sensors, so it good to get the proper code reading and diagnosis.

2012 Buick LaCrosse Check Engine Light Codes

The check engine light turning on can be quite intimidating, particularly to see that little light on your vehicle’s dashboard suddenly illuminate, but in reality, it is not something that should cause you to shut down in fear right away. If you hear the term, diagnostic trouble codes (DTC), these are just another name for check engine light codes. These are automotive computer codes stored by the ECM, still known as the OBD (on-board computer diagnostic system) in your LaCrosse. There are hundreds of different codes that your check engine light can accurately represent. While that sounds daunting, with a little patience, tackling basic diagnostics will give you advantageous knowledge about your vehicle and will still allow that critical Check Engine Light to do what it is absolutely supposed to do: be your guide. Sadly, evident and useful vehicle symptoms do not regularly accompany an illuminated Check Engine Light. Since there are hundreds of imaginable OBD codes, there are still hundreds of imaginable reasons for the light, including:

• Loose Gas Cap or Missing Gas Cap
• Ignition system faults
• Transmission issues
• Old Battery
• Computer output circuit issues
• Fuel and air metering systems problems
• Emissions controls issues
• O2 Sensor
• Bad Spark Plugs

This is why it is crucial for someone who does not have a lot of prevalent automotive knowledge to not assume what a code means. If the engine light comes on due to a serious concern, you risk damaging your vehicle further by not repairing the issue right away. When your check engine light comes on, you should get it checked out expeditiously by a adept certified Buick mechanic. Call Coggin Buick/GMC of Orange Park at 9046829278 today or schedule your check engine light service online today!

What Does the Check Engine Light Mean?

One of the most ordinarily misunderstood lights or indicators in your 2012 Buick LaCrosse is the check engine light. The check engine light is part of the vital onboard diagnostics system, and displays in a variety of different ways. It can say "Check Engine", it can be a symbol of an engine, it can even be a combination of both. This light illuminates in either an amber or red color and is part of the diagnostics system found on your vehicle. Onboard computers increasingly have controlled and monitored vehicle performance since the 80s and do a variety of things for your 2012 Buick LaCrosse. Some of these essential duties include ignition timing, shifting automatic transmissions controlling engine speed, and implementing cohesion control, just to name a few. With that being said, the check engine light can mean an assortment of different things. It can be as simple as your gas cap being loose or as perilous as engine knocking. If your check engine light is on in your 2012 Buick LaCrosse, contact Coggin Buick/GMC of Orange Park. Contact Coggin Buick/GMC of Orange Park today! Our Buick service department can help you find out what code is turning your check engine light on or diagnose why your check engine light is flashing.

2012 Buick LaCrosse Check Engine Light

A flashing light indicates that the problem is very serious and if not taken care of quickly may result in major and significant damage to the car. If the check engine light in your 2012 Buick LaCrosse starts flashing, that means that the problem needs attention quickly and your Buick should be brought in immediately. This blinking light frequently indicates a severe engine misfire allowing unburned fuel to be dumped into the exhaust system. There it can promptly raise the temperature of the catalytic converter to a point where damage is likely, requiring an costly and considerable repair. Some owners ask if spark plugs cause the check engine light to flash? This can explicitly be the cause. A faulty, old or dirty spark plug can cause the engine to misfire. If the problem is completely ignored or you continue to drive, this can spread to the spark plug wires, catalytic converter, or ignition coils which can lead to a very costly repair. If your check engine light is regularly flashing, please contact our team of automotive experts at Coggin Buick/GMC of Orange Park promptly by calling 9046829278.